BUILDING OUR TEMPLE
by Dr. Larry A. Bergeron
1 Corinthians 3:10-17
Red Bay COG / June 24, 2001 / AM
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS
In a few moments we will be looking at the book of 1 Corinthians 3
Throughout the history of mankind, man has erected temples to their gods.
Most of these temples were dedicated to false deities and religions.
This characteristic in human nature I believe comes from man being made in the Image of God.
For you see, the great purpose of God in redeeming mankind is to make of every human being a residence for the Spirit of God . . . a temple.
God’s will for us is that we prepare ourselves—according to His plan—to be a holy temple in which His Spirit will dwell.
So the question is, what kind of temple are you? How are you building your temple?
Stand with me as we read from 1 Corinthians 3:10
SCRIPTURE READING
1 Corinthians 3:10-17
10By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. 14If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
16Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
PRAYER
SERMON
As we look now at the work that is involved in BUILDING OUR TEMPLE, there are four things we need to consider: the FOUNDATION, the FURNISHINGS, the FIRE, and the FUTURE.
1. THE FOUNDATION OF OUR TEMPLE
Ask any contractor and he will tell you that a building is only as good as it’s foundation.
If the foundation is faulty, the building is doomed
If the foundation is solid, the building will stand a long time
Today, as we look at the foundation of our Temple, we are reminded of the history we find in the Old Testament of the Tabernacle and Temple building.
The pattern for building the temple began during the wilderness journey of the children of Israel.
It was not Moses’ plan that God desired.
For you see many want to try to build God’s house in their image
In their mind and ideas they are the kind who always gravitate to the negative.
They are never satisfied unless it’s their way
Of such was Korah who was killed for his rebellion against Moses who was following God’s command
Of such were Nadab and Abihu who offered strange fire and were killed at the altar
Oh that God would open the eyes of those who have been snared by the devil, that He would open the eyes of those who do that which is right in their own eyes.
You see, our foundation is everything.
It must not be on our opinion or desire, but on God’s Word and Will
But from the beginning God demanded—upon penalty of death—that His dwelling place would be built to HIS SPECIFICATIONS.
Moses was instructed on Mt. Sinai—as we are shown in Exodus 25—to build the Tabernacle EXACTLY ACCORDING TO THE PLANS THAT GOD HAD GIVEN HIM.
IF ANYONE DEPARTED FROM THIS PATTERN, THEY WERE TO BE PUT TO DEATH.
You may say, What does this have to do with me?
I’m a Christian, I follow the New Testament
God has declared that there is only one foundation that He will permit His Temple to stand upon,
Some call it Moriah, Others Zion,
We have come to know it as
OUR LORD AND SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST
1 Corinthians 3:11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.
There is but one name under heaven by which men must be saved
. . . THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
John 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”
If we try to build a dwelling place for God on any other foundation, God’s wrath will remain upon us, because we have rejected His Blue Print for our salvation.
May we who have ears to hear, hear what the Spirit of God is saying to us.
1 The Foundation of Our Temple
2. THE FURNISHINGS OF OUR TEMPLE
We must be very careful to build God’s dwelling,
His Temple, according to HIS PLAN.
His Foundation, Jesus Christ, the Word of God
Later, when the children of Israel were established in the land of Canaan, the promised land, God moved upon David and especially his son Solomon, to erect a magnificent temple unto the Lord God Almighty.
But even David had to learn to follow God’s instructions.
When he first tried to move the ark to Jerusalem, he didn’t follow God’s orders and many were killed
Later, when he submitted to God’s instructions, God permitted the ark to go to Jerusalem without killing those near it who tried to do things their own way, in their minds.
You see, being presumptuous with the things of God is a very dangerous place to be.
God will not tolerate a temple made without His instructions.
Then, when Israel was finally at peace God put it in the heart and soul of David’s son, Solomon, to build His temple.
1 KINGS 5:3-5 3“You know that because of the wars waged against my father David from all sides, he could not build a temple for the Name of the LORD his God until the LORD put his enemies under his feet. 4But now the LORD my God has given me rest on every side, and there is no adversary or disaster. 5I intend, therefore, to build a temple for the Name of the LORD my God, as the LORD told my father David, when he said, ‘Your son whom I will put on the throne in your place will build the temple for my Name.’
When Solomon began to build the temple, the Lord spoke to him. I want us to hear what the Lord said to Solomon, and I want us to hear how Solomon built the temple.
1 KINGS 6:11-22
11The word of the LORD came to Solomon: 12“As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, carry out my regulations and keep all my commands and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise I gave to David your father. 13And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon my people Israel.” 14So Solomon built the temple and completed it. 15He lined its interior walls with cedar boards, paneling them from the floor of the temple to the ceiling, and covered the floor of the temple with planks of pine. 16He partitioned off twenty cubits at the rear of the temple with cedar boards from floor to ceiling to form within the temple an inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place. 17The main hall in front of this room was forty cubits long. 18The inside of the temple was cedar, carved with gourds and open flowers. Everything was cedar; no stone was to be seen. 19He prepared the inner sanctuary within the temple to set the ark of the covenant of the LORD there. 20The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long, twenty wide and twenty high. He overlaid the inside with pure gold, and he also overlaid the altar of cedar. 21Solomon covered the inside of the temple with pure gold, and he extended gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, which was overlaid with gold. 22So he overlaid the whole interior with gold. He also overlaid with gold the altar that belonged to the inner sanctuary.
Notice that the inner sanctuary is the place for GOLD.
GOLD in the building of the temple and tabernacle always represents God’s presence. The place where God dwells is to be of pure Gold.
What does that mean to us as Christians, living in the New Testament?
NOT ONLY MUST OUR FOUNDATION BE JESUS CHRIST,
BUT OUR FURNISHINGS MUST ALSO BE JESUS
The apostle Paul put it this way,
Colossians 1:15-20
15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
And, just a few verses following,
Colossians 1:26,27
26the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. 27To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Again, we must hear the command of God . . . God is the one who determines who and how His temple will be built. Not us.
We must now understand what God was doing in the Old Testament.
Those many years ago, when the children of Israel were building the temple, it was in the plan of God so that we—who are living in the time spoken of by the prophet Joel, a time when the Lord will pour out His Spirit upon all flesh—we can now learn from their experience.
You say I understand about inviting Jesus into my heart, but what is all this temple stuff?
So, what does all this temple talk have to do with those of us who are Christians?
Listen to what the apostle Paul says,
EPHESIANS 2:19-22
19Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
1 CORINTHIANS 6:19-20
19Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
1 PETER 2:
4As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him—5you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
EPHESIANS 4:11-13
11It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
The Plan of God for the Furnishings of His Temple is Gold, that which is godly
Becoming a Vessel of Honor in God’s house
2 Timothy 2:19 19Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.” 20In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for noble purposes and some for ignoble. 21If a man cleanses himself from the latter, he will be an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.
We are Expected to FURNISH Our Temple According to God’s Plans
Furnish your temple with the character and spirit of Jesus Christ
Let the Gold of His character and spirit cover your stone walls completely
Only God should be inside the temple, only gold
1 The Foundation of Our Temple
2 The Furnishings of Our Temple
3. THE FIRE OF OUR TEMPLE
The reason why our foundation must be according to God’s plan
Is because He will try it with fire
God’s temple must pass His test!
Listen to what the Word says in 1 Corinthians 3:12-15
12If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. 14If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
Oh, that we would start building our spiritual portfolios and mansions instead of working so hard at things that will be burnt up
Let us hear the Word of God today
Let us make sure that we have furnished our Temple with the right furnishings
Furnishings like . . . love, joy, peace, gentleness, meekness, temperance, faith, self-control
There is a fire of judgment that is surely coming
May we all be found with furnishings of gold
1 The Foundation of Our Temple
2 The Furnishings of Our Temple
3 The Fire of Our Temple
4. THE FUTURE OF OUR TEMPLE
This is what it all boils down to.
If our temple is not built upon the foundation of Jesus Christ, we will die
If our temple is not furnished with the character and spirit of Christ, we will die
If our temple is not ready for the fire of God’s test we will suffer great loss, and enter heaven in embarrassment
But there is also one other aspect of building the temple that we must not overlook in these passages . . .
HOW WE TREAT GOD’S TEMPLE . . . . HIS SHEEP, OTHER BELIEVERS
Listen very carefully to the verse at the conclusion of our passage this morning,
1 Corinthians 3:16,17 16Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? 17If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
Some of you will hear this promise of God and still go out and gossip and speak evil of God’s servants.
I am pleading with you, for the sake of your own salvation,
Repent, do not try to destroy God’s temple
God’s temple is sacred, His people are His temple,
If you try to destroy them
GOD WILL DESTROY YOU!
CLOSE
So, how shall we conclude this look at Building Our Temple?
Listen to the word of God in 1 Thessalonians 5:11-24
11Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 12Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. 13Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. 14And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 15Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. 16Be joyful always; 17pray continually; 18give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; 20do not treat prophecies with contempt. 21Test everything. Hold on to the good. 22Avoid every kind of evil. 23May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.
Christian, hear God’s word this morning and start today to build your temple according to God’s blue print
If you are not saved, I want you to understand that Jesus Christ is the only way anyone is going to be spared the wrath of God when He comes.
This morning you have heard that God want’s to make you His personal temple
A place where His spirit can dwell forever.
Won’t you let him in?
